Midnight's Whispers
by BloodiLoveli
Summary: Lovino is a cowardly man, one with a dishonest tongue. The only time his words ring true is between dawn and twilight, where the dark wine of midnight loosens his lips and gives him the courage to be honest.


**AN: I have been so uninspired for Corrosive that I had to go play the game that inspired it (Boarderlands 1 & 2) and I still have not finished the chapter, so here is some fluff to tide everyone over, hopefully. **

* * *

Moonlight spilled through opened glass doors, washing into the room on a lazy tidal breeze and the distant sound of the ocean hugging the loving shore. A soft snoring was heard falling from slightly parted lips, still puffy from the passion of hours earlier. Hazel eyes, tired and drooping, watched the rise and fall of their lover's tanned chest. The owner sighed, pawing at his eyes to rid them of their sleep craving burn.

Lovino stretched, eyes still locked on Antonio's resting body. His heart clenched, filled with the words his stubborn mouth was too proud to say out loud. He pressed his fist to his chest and sighed, closing his eyes for a brief moment. When he looked over to Antonio again, the man had shifted to his side, facing away from Lovino's watchful gaze.

He pulled his body towards Antonio's, pressing his thigh against the man's back to shyly feel his warm skin again. Lovino urged his hand to move, resting it just above Antonio's shoulder, feeling the heat that ebbed from his caramel flesh. Antonio shifted again, his movement slight but enough to run against Lovino's hand. His pout lifted into a smile, small as it was, but as heartfelt as any toothy grin could ever be.

"I am a coward," Lovino whispered, "A poor coward with dishonest tongue." His eyes glanced down to Antonio's face, slim fingers sweeping unkempt locks of a chocolate hue from his fluttering eye lashes. These honest and tender gestures seemed like torture to the Italian when his lover was wake to appreciate them, but flew easily from his fingers like curses from his mouth.

He settled himself down into the shared cotton sheets, one arm used to prop up his sleep clouded head, and the other ghosted over the sleeping man's side.

"Antonio, Antonio," Lovino repeated, like a chant, a prayer, letting his mouth form around the man's name, tongue tapping at the roof of his mouth. While half of his body was still propped up, he let hid head droop.

"I love you." Lovino's shell pink lips trembled with the weight of his words, his drowsy tongue heavy with sleep and the words he so desired to say. Drunk on the night, body shivering with an anxious excitement, Lovino imbibed one last deep breath laced with ocean spray before locking his eyes onto his love's curly hair and strong jaw.

"Sickness tears at my stomach, and butterflies flutter amongst my insides. My tongue grows dry, gaining the weight of a thousand unspoken words, none of which I can form with that damned quivering muscle." Lovino paused, mouth clamping shut as he watched Antonio shift again, grumbling incomprehensible words from pointless dreams. Once he felt secure in the deep sleep of his partner, he forced down the lump in his throat and continued.

"Please, Il Tesero Mio, do not notice the restless shifting of my leg, of my shaking hands running through your hair. Overlook the mouth I cannot seem to hold just right, but hold it with your own in only the way you know." He hesitated again to pull his next words in the order he thought was best, swallowing thickly.

"While you speak to me, smile at me, gaze at me with beautiful eyes," here, Lovino ghosted the tips of his fingers over Antonio's cheek, "My throat contracts like my heart, and my voice becomes strangled. Feelings become tangled, so I run away, or hide behind a string of curses we both know are false." Lovino stopped, letting a sigh blow from his nose as he fully lay down in the bed. He looked up to his ceiling, tired mind searching. His eyes struggled to make out patterns in the plaster, finding the words he felt clacking at the back of his chattering teeth.

"By you, Antonio, do I wish my poor, sinners' soul to be judged. I will grasp my rosary with white knuckles and pray through the day and through the night, but I will grasp your hand with the same passion. I will." He reached up with shaking fingers to the small silver cross resting in the dip between his neck and chest, tapping the smooth metal. His eyes drifted closed, but his lips parted to whisper breathily his finale.

"Antonio, I am in love with you, and will stay that way 'till my last city crumbles and the memory of me fades, until I am but a ghost of history, a whispered story and a lasting part of your heart." Lovino's whisper was carried by the ocean's tide on the shore, through the window and out to sea. But the words filled with all that was Lovino were not lost to the moon light.

A single tear, all salt and bursting love, glided down Antonio's cheek, while a quivering smile pulled at his lips.

* * *

Lovino leaned over the railing of the balcony, feeling the sprinkle of salt water on his face warmed by the midday sun. Antonio sat beside him, feet propped up on the same railing. His chatting voice and the crashing waves melded into one sound in Lovino's ear, a wonderful symphony he grew to enjoy. When Antonio removed his voice from the music, Lovino was confused, Looking over his shoulder to spy the other man's soft, knowing smile.

That concerned Lovino, because he was sure the only things Antonio really knew were dishes that involve tomatoes and the places that, when kissed in a certain way, make Lovino's head lose all meaning of the word 'quiet'.

With a blossoming of red on his cheeks, Lovino snarled.

"What are you looking at, bastard," Lovino snapped, eyes narrow and judging as he flicked one of Antonio's bare toes. Antonio smile grew, sparkling eyes scrunching. He crooked a long finger in Lovino's direction, beckoning him, and the boy responded by reluctantly turning fully around and flopping down on Antonio's lap. Antonio snaked his arms around Lovino's lean waist and nuzzled his head in the younger man's chest. Lovino grumbled, all but used to Antonio's affectionate ways.

"I want to hold your mouth with mine in the only way I know how, Lovino," murmured Antonio, and Lovino's eyes widened. He roughly pushed Antonio away by his shoulders while trying to lift himself from Antonio's lap.

"You-You jerk," he yelled, "You horrible bastard, were you awake?" Antonio nodded, pulling Lovino's unhappy body against his own to keep him still. He rubbed his hands up the man's sides.

"Lovino, Love, calm down. Yes, I heard your words, I heard them all. Please, calm down." Lovino glared down at Antonio, but stopped trying to remover himself from the taller man's lap. His head drooped, bangs covering his embarrassed eyes.

"Why didn't you tell me you were awake," Lovino asked quietly. Antonio flicked the auburn hair from his lover's eyes, kissing his nose.

"I never get to hear these things from you, Lovino, and the only time I do is when the dark cover of night gives you strength. I know those are your times, but please forgive me for being greedy; I just can't help but to listen to your beautiful words." Antonio looked at him with wide, pleading eyes, but Lovino pushed himself from Antonio's hips, and the green eyed man offered no resistance. He walked to the glass door, pushing it open but pausing to peer back over his shoulder to Antonio. His shoulders lifted high with a large sigh.

"Come make me some food, and then let's have a nap. Maybe," he cleared his throat, "Maybe I'll talk some more." Antonio's frown vanished in seconds, replaced by a happy grin. He hopped past Lovino to the kitchen. Lovino leaned against the door frame, ocean winds blowing past him and the curtains billowed around him. He smiled and walked to the bed, lying down in the engulfing sheets with a quirky smile.


End file.
